Adjustable obstetrical chair



March 9, 1937. G 2,073,094

ADJUSTABLE OBSTETRICAL CHAIR Filed March 5, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 IN VENTOR, 202/7 2. 31 a,?

ATTORNEYJ .March 9, 1937. D BUGH I 2,073,094

ADJUSTABLE OBSTETRICAL CHAIR Filed March 5, 1934 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR, Jaafi Z. 349/5.

ATTORNEYS.

Patented Mar. 9, 1937 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 11 Claims.

This invention relates to medical and surgical equipment and has for its primary object the provision of an obstetrical appliance that may be carried to the patient in the home, where it is desirable that delivery occur at such place.

One of the important aims of the instant invention is to provide a collapsible and adjustable obstetrical chair that may be housed within a case which forms the support for the group of collapsible parts of the chair and which may be quickly demounted from said support so that the said group of collapsible parts might be used as a stretcher to carry the patient from place to place.

Another object of this invention is to provide an obstetrical chair that may be used in supporting the patient in the natural position whereby the action of gravity might be employed in assisting delivery and drainage may take place constantly g and naturally without danger to the patient.

A still further object of the invention is the contemplation of improvements in equipment of the character mentioned which will result in the production of a chair that may be used in genitoas urinary work, may also be employed in giving treatments to patients and making examinations, or even performing minor surgical operations where it is desired to take the necessary equipment to the patient rather than move him at the risk of infection or perhaps serious consequences.

The adjustable chair contemplated by this invention is adapted to be used in connection with ordinary hospital tables or may be mounted on a hydraulic chair for hospital or ofiice practice and is particularly desirable because it may be made of light weight, durable metal that can be sterilized and kept clean.

Besides the foregoing broad general objects of the invention, many very important minor objects, concerning details of construction, form and adjustability, will appear during the course of the following specification, referring to the accompanying drawings, wherein like numerals of reference indicate similar parts throughout the several views. In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a top plan View of an obstetrical chair made to embody the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a vertical, central section through the chair as shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the closed case which contains the remaining parts of the complete chair.

Fig. 4 is a vertical, central section through the case and collapsed chair, with the case shown both opened and closed.

Fig. 5 is a front elevation of the chair.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged, detailed, fragmentary, longitudinal, sectional view taken through a por- 5 tion of the brace.

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary, sectional view through the hinge connection between foot rest and leg carrier.

Fig. 8 is a sectional view taken on line VIII 10 VIII of Fig. 7.

Fig. 9 is an enlarged, detailed, sectional view through the latch which automatically interconnects the parts of the case when opened.

Figs. 10 and 11 are fragmentary views show- 15 ing two associated parts of the hinge-forming connection between back rest and plate.

Fig. 12 is a longitudinal, central, sectional view through the hinge-forming connection between plate and case, and, 20

Fig. 13 is a perspective view of the protector and receptacle that is used with the chair.

In fulfilling one of the objects of the invention, the case l6 clearly shown in Fig. 3, and having a section 18 and a section 20 connected by hinge 22, is provided to serve as a housing for the group of collapsible parts making up the chair, as well as a support in the fashion illustrated in Figs. 1, 2, and 5. When sections I8 and. 20 are swung to the open position a latch 24 automatically inter- 30 connects the sections to maintain them in rigid relation. This latch is detailed in Fig. 9 and in order to meet the requirements of such use, should comprise an opening 26 formed in one wall of section 18, through which passes barrel 5 28 which is carried by the other section. This barrel is held in position by a screwthreaded collar 30, within which is partially housed coil spring 32 that urges plunger 34 longitudinally through barrel 28. A pair of opposed dogs 36 40 are pivotally supported as shown in Fig. 9 and engaged by one end of plunger 34 to be moved outwardly and inwardly thereby as longitudinal reciprocation occurs. Obviously, when the closed. end of barrel 28 enters hole 26, dogs 36 will be 45 moved inwardly and then spring out to latch sections l8 and 20 together, as illustrated in both Figs. 2 and 9.

This rigid joining of the parts of case l6 provides a substantial support that may be used to 50 carry the remaining parts of the chair and will be rigid enough to support a patient. Releasing of latch 24 is accomplished by manual manipulation of plunger 34 to the extent of moving the same inwardly against the pressure of spring 32.

Fig. 4 illustrates the relation of parts of the chair when the same are fully collapsed in the inoperative position and housed by case i6. To fulfill both the objects of housing the parts of the chair and making the same highly efficient in use, the elements thereof should comprise a plate 38 that is provided with hinge barrels 49 at one edge thereof, whereby to hingedly interconnect section I8 and plate 38.

This construction is shown in detail in Fig. 12 and since it is desirable to disassoci'ate plate 38 and section I8, hinge pins 42 are outturned at their inner adjacent ends, whereby they may be grasped and moved toward each other against the action of coil spring 44 to the extent where hinge barrels 49 will be disengaged and plate 38, together with all its supported structure, may be quickly lifted from case 16 as it is in the position shown in Fig. 2. The hereinafter described brace is likewise easily disconnected from the supporting case and in this fashion the patient and all parts of the chair in contact with her may be bodily moved. Plate 38 has a back rest 46 hingedly carried thereby and the hinge connection between plate 38 and back rest 46 is of novel construction in that the hinge barrels 48 and 59 of back rest 46 and plate 38 respectively are equipped with radial serrations 52 and 54 which interengage only after back rest 46 has been moved through the path of travel about the axis of the hinge connection for a short predetermined distance. After this movement takes place, serrations 52 and 54 engage and the back rest 46 may be locked in a number of predetermined positions through the remaining portion of said path of travel.

Hinge pins 56 are in screwthreaded engagement with handled clamping nuts 58 so that tightening and loosening may take place without delay. Hand holds 69 are formed in plate 33 so that the patient may grip the same during an operation. A seat to accommodate the patient is carried by plate 38 and this seat comprises a pair of seat members 62 and 64 of the form shown in Fig. 1 so that one end of the members may overlap and be pivotally joined by pin 66 which passes downwardly through plate 36 to serve as a means of securing the seat to the plate. The opposite or non-overlapping ends of said seat members 62 and 64 are spaced-apart as shown and this distance is varied as desired merely by moving said members about pin 66 as an axis.

Plate 38 is cut away as shown at 68 to assure space between the patient-supporting parts and also to allow positioning a hereinafter described protector.

A leg carrier 10 is pivotally carried by each seat member respectively .and the pivotal connection is made thereto at the free ends thereof. In making this connection, care should be taken that pivot pins 12 and 14 of each leg carrier are on an'axial line disposed at an angle to the major plane of seat members 62 and 64. Seat members 62 and 64, as well as leg carriers 10, are formed to present a contour that will accomodate thebody and the inner wall of each leg carrier 36 is substantially higher than the outer wall. By positioning pivot pins 12 and 14 at an angle to the major plane of members 62 and 54, it will be apparent that movement on the part of these leg carriers will cause the seat or free ends thereof to not only raise and lower, but to move toward and from each other. By virtue of this aovaoea construction, the natural tendency when .a patient moves a leg is followed and comfort and convenience is the result.

Each leg carrier 10 has a foot rest 16 hingedly affixed to the end thereof, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, which has an outturned portion 18 to receive the foot of the patient. The hinged connection between member 10 and foot rest I6 is unique in that it permits raising and lowering of members 18 and also a swinging of the foot rest about a center having its axis disposed at right angles to the axis of hinge pin 80 forming the major hinge connection between foot rest 16 and leg carrier 10. A stop such as member 15 should be employed to limit relative movement between leg carriers 16 and foot rest 16.

Figs. 7 and 8 illustrate the manner in which each foot rest 16 has an inturned portion 82 along each longitudinal edge thereof to form a channel which receives a small plate 84 to which is pivotally affixed hinge element 86. This pivotal connection is shown at 88 and a screw 90 is provided to pass through plate 84 into engagement with foot rest 16 so that when the position desired is attained, the screw may be tightened to fix the parts against further movement.

Each foot rest 16 has an ear 92 thereon that is in slidable engagement with a tube 94 forming a part of a brace which cooperates with case 5 in supporting the chair. Tube 94 is in telescoping engagement at its one end with a shaft 96 that is pivotally supported within section 18 of case 16, as shown at 98. This shaft 96 carries a spring-pressed dog I06 which moves into engagement with an opening 102 formed through tube 94 when the chair is moved to the operative position. To either release these parts so that the chair may be collapsed or entirely removed from case 16, dog MD is moved inwardly against thepressure of spring [04 so that shaft 96 may be -i Withdrawn from tube 94. The position of foot rest '16 that is shown in Fig. 2 is normal and in some cases it is desired to raise both the foot rest and its associated leg carrier so that the.- joint at the knee is disposed at an acute angle. Merely lifting up on foot rest 16 will slide ear 92 along tube 94 to a point where catch I06 engages beneath ear 92 to hold the parts in the lifted position. Spring I08 insures that catch I06 will remain in the operative position until the operator forces the same back into tube 94.

Another tube H0 is secured to the bottom face of plate 38 and a connecting rod H2 has one of its ends in telescoping relation with this tube. The other end of this rod H2 is pivotally interconnected to tube 94 as at H4, all of which allows movement of the parts to the positions shown in Fig. 4 from and to that shown in Fig. 2. All connections hereinbefore mentioned are more or less loose where necessary, in order to allow freedom of adjustment and the parts to assume a place where they will be most comfortable to the patient. Since back rest 46 may be adjusted, it is to be seen that a patient may be placed in most any desired posture ranging from a practically prone position to a sitting position.

A special protector shown in Fig. 13 and indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 2, is provided to receive any foreign matter that may be drained from the patient and. this protector should comprise a flexible body of sheet metal H6 that has a housing I 58 formed therethrough from the edge of which depends the sack-like structure I20 that receives drainage. Body H6 should be formed to snugly fit over the parts of the chair and I20 depends downwardly between seat members 62 and 64 and leg carriers as shown in Fig. 2.

When the parts are folded they assume the relation illustrated in Fig. 4. When quickly opening the chair it is necessary to merely grasp the upper edge of back rest 46 when the case l6 has been opened to a point, not shown in Fig. 4, after which an upward pull will draw all the group of collapsible parts of the chair to the position shown in Fig. 2 and case will become a support by-virtue of its sections 58 and being interlocked.

A large number of deviations from the structure actually illustrated and described might be followed without departing from the spirit of the invention or scope of the appended claims. The manner of using the chair has been made clear throughout the specification and the benefits arising from its use are obvious.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. An obstetrical chair of the character described comprising a support; a plate hingedly mounted on the support; a back rest pivotally carried by the plate; and a seat on the plate, said seat comprising a pair of overlapping seat members hingedly interconnected by a single vertical pivot whereby the legs of the patient may be moved toward and from each other as the seat members are moved about their hinge connection, said vertical pivot extending through the overlapped portions.

2. An obstetrical chair of the character described comprising a seat having a pair of overlapping arcuate members hingedly interconnected by a single vertical pivot at the overlapped portions at one end thereof; a leg carrier pivotally mounted on the free end of each seat member respectively; and a foot rest hingedly carried by each leg carrier whereby the legs of the patient may be moved toward and from each other as the seat members are moved about the vertical pivot as the legs of the patient are supported by the leg carriers.

3. In an obstetrical chair of the character described, a seat having a pair of overlapping seat members hinged together at the overlapped portions by a single vertical pivot for movement about a common vertical axis; a leg carrier pivot- .ally joined to each seat member for movement about :a horizontal axis; and a foot rest hingedly carried by each leg carrier, the leg carriers having .a relatively high wall along their adjacent edges and formed to present a concave face at their upper sides to receive the lower portions of the legs of the patient whereby to confine the legs therein and the same may be moved toward and from each other as the seat members are moved about said vertical pivot.

4. An obstetrical chair of the character described comprising a support; a plate hingedly connected along one edge thereof to said support for movement toward and from the same; a seat on the plate; a pair of leg carriers pivotally carried by the seat adjacent the free edge of said plate and normally in substantially the same plane as the seat and plate; a foot rest hingedly carried by each leg carrier respectively; a sectional brace having telescoping sections and pivotally interconnected sections associated with each foot rest respectively and underlying the leg rests respectively and said plate; and means for slidably securing one section of the brace to the respective adjoining foot rest, one end of each brace being pivotally joined to the support at the hinge connection of said plate, the other end of said brace being hingedly secured to said support at a point spaced from said hinge connection, the pivotal connection between two adjoining sections of the support permitting movement of the said sections from a position in longitudinal alignment to perpendicular positions relative to each other as the leg carrier and foot rest are so moved relative to each other whereby the said parts of the chair may be moved toward and from the said support.

5. An obstetrical chair of the character described comprising a support; a seat on the support having a pair of overlapping seat members hingedly interconnected at the overlapped portions by a single vertical pivot; and adjustable leg supports operably affixed to each of said seat members.

6. An obstetrical chair of the character described comprising a support; a seat thereon comprising a pair of horizontally disposed arouate members overlapped at their one end and hingedly interconnected at the overlapped portion by a single vertical pivot to permit the upper parts of the legs of the patient to move toward or from each other; and a leg carrier pivotally mounted on each of said seat members respectively at the other end thereof, said leg carriers each being connected to their respective seat member by opposed pivot pins having their axes on a line disposed at an angle to the plane of the said seat with the outermost pivot pins higher than the innermost pin of each leg carrier whereby when the leg carriers are moved the free ends thereof will approach and move from each other to move the lower part of the legs of the patient toward and from each other independently of the movement of the upper part.

7. An obstetrical chair of the character described comprising a seat; a pair of legs carriers hingedly mounted on the forward edge of said seat for movement about a horizontal axis; and a foot rest pivotally connected to each leg carrier respectively, said pivotal connections between the foot rests and leg carriers comprising two hinges, the axis of one of the hinges of the said connection being transverse to the axis of the other hinge thereof.

8. An obstetrical chair of the character described comprising aseat; a pair of leg carriers hingedly mounted on the forward edge of said seat for movement about a horizontal axis; and

a foot rest pivotally connected to each leg carrier respectively, said pivotal connections between the foot rests and leg carriers comprising two hinges, the axis of one of the hinges of the said connection being transverse to the axis of the other hinge thereof, said foot rests each being slidably carried by their pivotal connections for movement toward or from the hinges thereof, said foot rests each having means for securing the foot rests in desired adjusted positions.

9. An obstetrical chair of the character described comprising a support having two parts hingedly joined along one edge to permit relative movement to and from a position where said parts are disposed in an inclined condition, one of said parts comprising angularly related portions, one of which portions engages the other part and the other portion extending at an angle to said other part when said parts are in inclined condition to form a rigid support; a plate hingedthe hinged edge thereof for swinging movement about an axis parallel to the joint connecting the parts of the support toward and from said other part; a pair of seat parts pivotally interconnected and pivotally mounted on said plate by a single pivot pin to permit adjustment; a pair of leg carriers, one pivotally carried by each of the seat parts for movement to positions at angles to the seat from a position in a plane therewith; a foot rest pivotally connected to each leg carrier; a brace, carried by the said other part of the support for each leg carrier and foot rest respectively, each brace having two parts hinged together adjacent to the pivotal connection between the leg carrier and foot rest; means pivotally and extensibly connecting the free ends of the parts of said brace to said other part of the support adjacent opposite ends of said support part; and means on each foot rest respectively for slidably engaging one of the parts of the proximal brace to maintain the foot rest and associated leg carrier at an angle to each other when the chair is in the operative position with the said parts disposed in an inclined position.

10. An obstetrical chair comprising a case having two tray-like parts hingedly joined along one edge to permit relative movement toward and from each other to form a housing when the parts are closed, one of said parts comprising angularly related portions, one of which portions engages the other part and the other portion of said part extends at an angle to said other part to form a rigid support when said parts are opened and placed in inclined position; a seat hingedly mounted on said other part for movement to and from a position within said housing; means for rigidly securing together the parts of said case when opened and placed in an inclined position; and braces for supporting the seat in operative position, having the ends thereof hingedly connected to said other part adjacent opposite ends thereof,

.ly mounted on the other part of the support at said braces each comprising a plurality of telescoping parts, two of said parts being pivotally joined together and means connecting said braces to said seat to support the seat in a horizontal position when in the operative position with the said parts secured together in an inclined condition to serve as a support for the chair, said seat and braces being movable about their hinge connections for movement into a housed position within the housing.

11. An obstetrical chair comprising a case having two tray-like parts hingedly joined along one edge to permit relative movement toward and from each other to form a housing when the parts are closed, one of said parts comprising angularly related portions, one of which portions engages the other part and the other portion of said part extends at an angle to said other part to form a rigid support when said parts are opened and placed in inclined position; a seat hingedly mounted on said other part for movement to and from a position within said housing; means for rigidly securing together the parts of said case when opened and placed in an inclined position; and braces for supporting the seat in operative position, having the ends thereof hingedly connected to said other part adjacent opposite ends thereof, said braces each comprising a plurality of telescoping parts, two of said parts being pivotally joined together and means connecting said braces to said seat to support the seat in a horizontal position when in the operative position with the said parts secured together in an inclined condition to serve as a support for the chair, said seat and braces being movable about their hinge connections for movement into a housed position within the housing, said means for rigidly securing together the parts of the case being automatically operable when the parts are moved to the fully opened position about the hinge joining the same.

DOLPH D. BUGH. 

